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Jor-El (New Earth)
Jor-El was once a scientist and high-ranking member of the Kryptonian Science Council on the planet Krypton. He was a protege of the eminent scientist known as Non and together they discovered that Krypton was suffering from severe geological disturbances - disturbances that threatened to destroy the entire planet. Jor-El brought his concerns to the Science Council, but they dismissed his assertions as a vehicle of paranoia and discord. Jor-El was also the architect of the Phantom Zone projector, a device that could teleport convicted criminals into an otherworldly dimension called the Phantom Zone. Jor-El believed that imprisonment in the Phantom Zone was a more humane method of incarcerating criminals, though he had little knowledge of what life inside the Phantom Zone was truly like.Action Comics Annual #10 Shortly before the destruction of Krypton, Jor-El and his wife Lara gave birth to a son named Kal-El. Desperate to save his son's life, he created a star-drive ship designed to take him to another world - a world where he would be safe and grow up to be strong and happy. Sometime afterwards, he and Non were arrested by General Zod and Ursa. When Non defies the Council's dire prohibitions and elects to spread the word of the coming apocalypse, he is abducted by Council agents and apparently lobotomized, thus explaining the character's mute simple-mindedness, brutality, and destructiveness. Appalled, Zod and Ursa propose to Jor-El that they band together and overthrow the Council, but Jor-El will have none of it. When their murderous insurrection fails, the Council forces Jor-El to exile them to the Phantom Zone and never speak of his findings again, lest he face the same fate. For this perceived betrayal, Zod declares that he will escape and conquer Krypton (confident that Jor-El will actually discover some way to save the planet) and force the scientist and his son to kneel before him one day ("You will bow down before me, Jor-El! I swear it! No matter that it takes an eternity, you will bow down before me! Both you, and then one day, your heirs!!!") Jor-El explored the galaxy in search of a suitable planet and sent out dozens of probes designed to collect various data. His research revealed that Kryptonians living in a yellow-star system developed enhanced physical characteristics including super-strength, speed and agility. One of Jor-El's probes landed on the planet Earth where it was discovered by motorist Thomas Wayne while he was on a drive with a pregnant Martha. When Thomas touched the probe, his consciousness was instantly transported to Krypton where he met Jor-El so that Jor-El could better learn what kind of world Earth was to help him decide which of many possible candidates he should send his son to. Although their meeting was brief, Jor-El developed a fondness and respect for Thomas Wayne. Thomas tells Jor-El that the people of Earth aren't perfect, but are essentially a good and kind race, who would raise the child right. He decided that Earth would be the perfect planet for his son to be raised. Thomas recorded his encounter in a diary, which was discovered by Bruce in the present day. Within a short period of time, Jor-El's worst nightmares came to pass. Massive groundquakes erupted across the planet and Krypton literally shook in its death-throes. With little time to spare, Jor-El and Lara placed baby Kal-El into his rocket ship and sent him off towards Earth. Krypton exploded and everyone on the planet, including Jor-El, were killed. Having been rebuilt via a Kryptonian crystal during the One Year Later story arc, the current version of the Fortress of Solitude, now contains an advanced interactive "recording" of Jor-El which, is otherwise identical in function. | Powers = | Abilities = * : Jor-El possessed an advanced knowledge of Kryptonian history. * : He was also a proficient scientific engineer responsible for designing hyper-drive technology. | Strength = As a product of Eugenics, Jor-El was in perfect physical shape. His strength level was equitable to that of an athletic, male Kryptonian despite the lack of any regular exercise. | Weaknesses = | Equipment = *'Robots:' Jor-El made use of his father's robotic servants, such as Kelex and Kelor. *'Hyper-Drive:' Jor-El designed a hyper-drive system, which he attached to his son's birthing matrix, rendering it capable of interstellar flight. | Transportation = | Weapons = | Notes = * The original concept of Jor-El was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in 1938. Writer/artist John Byrne reimagined the character for the Post-Crisis environment in 1986, taking great liberties with the character's history and overall appearance. It was later completely reimagined again by Mark Waid in 2004. * Height and weight from Superman: The Man of Steel Sourcebook. | Trivia = | Recommended = * * * Superman: Birthright | Wikipedia = Jor-El | Links = }}